


Fate's Crystal Majesty V 16

by Kitkat_rian



Series: Fate's Crystal Majesty Previous Versions [2]
Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-30
Updated: 2017-06-30
Packaged: 2018-11-21 08:35:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11353776
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kitkat_rian/pseuds/Kitkat_rian
Summary: Version 16Somewhat older cast. Like original, Crow is the eldest. Lilly has untapped magical potential, and is alive, because of the Crystal.





	Fate's Crystal Majesty V 16

Chapter One

 

 

Lilly yawned, turning over. This bed was very comfortable, she concluded, whose house am I at?

Well, there was no noise of arguing or children at play, so it couldn't be Izzy's house. There weren't any giggles that come from reading, so it couldn't be Terra's house. There weren't and cats, so it certainly wasn't Rory's house. And, obviously, this could never be her house, or all three would be taking place. But if not, then where was she?

With a sad sigh, her eyes fluttered open to an ornate cream and white ceiling, accented by bright sunlight and gold trim.

This definitely was NOT her house. She quickly sat up, eyeing the bedroom cautiously; the room was very spacious, and included not only the very large bed she was now laying in, but an expensive modern sound system, a nice black leather couch, a set of glass doors that seemed to open up to a balcony, and a good three or four other doors that did not openly give her their purpose. This was one of those rooms you would think a princess would have had before The Demon Wars.

But where was she?

She then noticed on the bedside table a white dress. It seemed to glitter silver in some places, and there was golden trim on the collar. Blushing, she tried it on.

 

)O( Meanwhile, in the hallway… )O(

 

Two princes stood in an awkward silence, leaning against the wall opposite the door to the “Prisoner’s” quarters. The quality of the air around them was thick, with the sort of uncomfortable weight that would make anyone turn around and walk the other way. Each stared in a different direction, blinking at a minimum; each moved so little that they appeared to not even breathe.

The younger and shorter of the two, Prince Keir, was tense. His muscles were tightly wound, as if he expected to have to tackle someone to the ground at a moment’s notice. He wore a much different outfit from his field clothes; dark, brown-black sandals, a billowing black shirt, moon-silver pants, and a fair number of silver bands which adorned his arms. He had taken out contacts, and his eyes that were previously more of a light chocolate, were now slit-pupiled, and the warm color of amber, or honey in the sunlight. This was a boy who wore the simple, yet still extravagant livery of royalty. 

The other, presumably an elder brother, appeared almost casual, with even more simple attire. However, he only came off as more regal. Slightly baggy black pants were held down by rich, chocolate brown riding boots that seemed to hug the man’s form in a way that only years-old favorite boots can. He wore a shirt that seemed to be made of sunlight, with white and gold threads woven together to create an effect of brightness, even through the slight covering of dust. His tanned skin almost glowed, showing off a cringe-worthy amount of cuts and bruises, like he’d been fighting on the way up the stairs. His eyes were the tinged blue shade of ice that one might see if they were drowning in a frozen lake. Light, but cold and hard, as if death was imminent. Indeed, if the younger brother was a prince, the older brother was certainly even more so.

It was the elder brother that finally broke the heavy silence. “She is a full human?”

Keir’s eyes flickered to the other man for less than a second, but then fixed themselves back to the door. “I found her myself, and she is definitely only a human. Albeit one with a lot of magic.”

A chuckle and a sneer answered. “Forgive me, brother, if I prefer to double check. It’s no treasured secret that my senses are keener.” He said, with a soft, underlying tone of menace in an otherwise casually voiced remark.

All that was said afterwards was a series of low growls, Keir not having enough time to respond before their father finally rounded the corner. His aura was so strong that the air crackled to accommodate the easy-going man as the brothers’ combined intensity was shoved aside.

Both princes kneeled, not out of fear or even respect of the King, but in the tradition that one always submits the right of authority to a much stronger soul.

“Ah, my sons! Here you are.” The King said kindly, with a tone of surprise that spoke not only of his absent mindedness, but also of his love for the two sons. “I was just on my way to greet our guest. I would hope she’d be awake now. Humans usually rise around mid-morning, if I remember correctly.”

“A waste of daylight if you asked me…” Keir sighed, presenting his father with the key to her room.

“Oh, but you forget your lore, Keir…” The elder brother stated, the same low menace in his voice as he said his brother’s name, as there was when he had vocally acknowledged their brotherly bond. “Humans must sleep at least once every day cycle. Someone with human blood doesn’t have the energy that, say, a full demon would have.”

Only the King’s presence kept Keir’s remark as civil as a deep, rumbling growl that almost shook the hallway.

“Now, now.” The King chided calmly, as if barely registering the true and honest threat of both brothers attacking each other in a heartbeat. “I’m sure she’s anxious and confused. Let’s be kind to our guest, and understanding of her fears.”

Another intense heartbeat, and then the two warring brothers were doing their best to move cautiously as they followed their father in. What they saw surprised them more than either had been in quite some time.

 

)O(

 

Lilly stood awkwardly, her eyes focused on the three men that slowly entered. The eldest was a man that couldn’t be older than her own father. He seemed to glide through the door in robes the same lively colors as the sun’s rays. The other two seemed trapped in place. The tallest was eyeing her with an amused interest, very intent on her stance. The other one, oddly familiar, seemed to be suffering from some sort of secondhand embarrassment, and was blushing mutely.

She herself was as embarrassed as he looked as she slowly put down the large candelabra that she had grabbed in reaction to the eerie growl she had heard only a few seconds ago. The silence in the room was palpable as the three younger occupants just watched each other. It was broken fairly quickly though, as recognition and indignation burst from the girl.

“It’s you!!!”

The boy fidgeted slightly, as if caught between some sort of prideful gesture and a more sheepish itch to rub the back of his head. “Yes?”

“You asshole! You kidnapped me!”

The room fell silent once again. This time, the silence was broken by the older boy, who started barking in laughter. Keir’s eyes widened, and he looked ready to shout something equally aggressive, but his father broke in first. “I’m glad you recognize him. That will make introductions much shorter!” the man smiled warmly, giving a sweeping bow that spoke of years of grace and practice, both brothers, hesitating only a second, made the same gesture, although Keir wavered slightly.

Lilly blushed brightly, curtsying. Both princes would have noted that in the demon-made dress, even the scared and trembling human looked almost graceful. Almost.

“I am Solaris Nightwing, King of the Rorvan, or wolf demons, as you might know us better by.” The King said, his tone gentling as he noticed the blood drain from her as her fear thickened, “These two are my sons. Crowanun, or Crow, the Lost Prince, and Prince Keir, whom you’ve already met.”

Her throat dry, Lilly forced her voice to work, praying it didn’t waver as she eyed the men’s heads, noticing for the first time their wolf ears, the boys’ as black as their raven colored hair, and the King’s as silver as his own. “…I’m Lilly Fierstele. My friends call me Lee. Sir… your Majesty, that is, it’s an honor to see you in my lifetime. I’ve read of your work as a general… you fought bravely, and you look well for your centuries of age.”

It was the King’s turned to laugh as he straightened, and motioned for her to accompany him to the comfortable seats on one side of the room. “You do me an honor, Lady Fierstele. I hardly remember the wars, and my work as a general was hardly necessary in the end, as you might recall. A hasty retreat is not quite what many of my soldiers had in mind.”

Lilly blushed. “Please Sir, I’m no lady… and I’d call it very brave. You had no idea where you were going, but you didn’t want anyone else to die. I’m sorry that my own people weren’t as wise. Some of the braver politicians call the last battle the March of Shame.”

As those two talked history, the princes both straightened and followed. Crow looking at the human with the grudging respect she deserved, while Keir just looked angry and embarrassed. Both princes sat quietly, barely noticing their proximity to each other, as they watched their father work his own form of magic on the human.

It has been said that the King of the Wolves could talk an ogre into becoming a vegetarian of he wanted to. No one knew if this was true, for the King had yet to try, but in only a few more sentences the human girl and the demon king were laughing and talking as if they were old friends.

“Ah, my dear, look what we’ve done!” He said, directly in the manner of chattery old friends, “I think my sons feel left out. Tell me boys, How do you feel about Lilly so far?”

The two princes gave their esteemed father a look of shock, but Crow recovered quickly, smiling and stifling a chuckle as he turned and gave Lilly a well-rehearsed look of satisfied wonder. “I’m both surprised and delighted father, to have come across a human not only beautiful, but educated as well.”

He continued smiling as Lilly turned beat red, while Keir gave an equally embarrassed cough to hide his irritation at being beat to the punch. “She’s alright, I guess… as far as humans go.”

At Lilly’s frown, Crowanun gave an exasperated sigh. “Perhaps my brother has consorted with humans more than I, but that is still no excuse to be rude. Pay no mind to him, My Lady. You are doing wonderfully among us. Prince Keir does you a great dishonor by not admitting so.”

At the sign of another fight breaking out, the King spoke up with his now familiar, warm smile. “My sons, it’s nearly time for lunch now. I’m sure our guest is hungry. Go to the kitchens and instruct them to ready some lunch and present it in the small dining hall.”

Crow’s eyebrows shot up. “Both of us, father?”

The King nodded. “You would do well to remind yourself of our hallways, Crowanun. You will, after all, be making this your home again for a time. You both go for my own piece of mind- the servants will move extra quickly if you both go, and I am parched. I’m sure our guest feels the same.”

And just like that, both brothers were marching out the door, as if it were a competition.

As the door shut behind them, the King seemed to age many years, and gave a sigh, but smiled after a fashion. “They are very tiring, are they not?” after Lilly’s embarrassed nod of agreement, he continued, “It is my hope that you take every word from Crow’s mouth through a filter before you let it touch your heart. I’m sorry, but he knows something that I have yet to tell both you and Keir.”

“What might that be… your Majesty?”

The King’s smile widened. “Please feel free to call me Solaris when we’re alone, or even with the princes. I find formality to be an exhausting necessity. My dear Lilly, I’m very sorry. I’ve done something all Kings hope not to do, but inevitably must; I’m playing match maker. You see, you are a very special soul, and it is my hope that you will come to love and marry one of my sons. Whoever you choose will inevitably take my place as King. At least, I hope.”

Silence. Lilly’s mind was blank as she stared at him, processing this. The King continued, a bit of doubt in his voice. “You see, my kingdom is in the middle of a civil war, and this threatens not only peace within, but peace without as well. As the oldest, Crowanun would normally have been first in line, and the problem would only be in making sure he was ready. But he was born before I was even a prince, to a mother who is long dead. Keir’s mother, who died only a few decades ago, was already my queen when he was conceived, making his claim just as solid as Crow’s, if not actually more so. Crow is, of course, bitter. He left some time ago to be with those who prefer him over Keir. There is some small fighting that goes on, and many of my guards actually consider him a threat to my life…” There was a sigh of disbelief here, “Keir is young and awkward. Not the diplomat that I have honed myself to be, and Crow has been since he could talk. But he has a strong heart, and a love for his people, while Crow detatches himself from the common demon.”

“… Go on, please. Majesty. Solaris.”

The King smiled softly. “I will be honest. Like many of the demons of his generation, those old enough to remember the war, but young enough that they did not personally know any humans, Crowanun has a deep and powerful hatred for your kind. He is hardened. He does not know of love and peace as I do from knowing humans, but he does know the fear and anger that we felt back then. I believe that, over time, you could come to show him the beauty that your people have inside them. He could eventually come to love you as more than a means to an end. You have already impressed him, after all. I believe his compliment to you was not forced, even if it wasn’t entirely genuine either.

“And Keir, of course, was born in peace time. He’s an awkward pup compared to his brother, but he is very honest, and very kind to those he calls friends. He’s sarcastic by nature, but he has a deep love of all life. I believe that you might become to him what I was to my wife. A grounding presence. He does not always think before he acts, but his acts are always in the interests of others more than just himself. He is proud, though. After all, he is his mother’s child. Strong willed. Open hearted. And, part human.”

Lilly gasped softly. “Him? Really?”

King Solaris laughed heartily. “Yes. Him. He does not look it, but it’s there, visible in his emotions and the way he thinks about the world. His mother’s father was a human. A baker, if I remember correctly. Her mother was a gentle demon, who was sickly from birth. She enjoyed playing with the human children, since they did not bite during a game of tag.” This last bit made Lilly laugh, “The baker was one of those children, though her childhood lasted longer. He was born while she was an adolescent, and his adolescence ended as she became a teenager. I hear that they were a happy pair…. She died during my late wife’s birth, and he cared for her as best he could, though died of old age when she was still too young to be left to her own devices. The midwife of the village I lived in took her in…” he grinned, sharp teeth glinting, causing Lilly to grin as well, “The rest is history. She, to her adoptive mother’s dismay, became a powerful soldier. She had a gift for magic that no one had seen before, and could hit a squirrel with an arrow from hundreds of feet away. She terrified me, of course.”

Lilly giggled. “But you loved her anyway?”

He nodded. “First as a soldier who never let me down, and then… she surprised me. It was during one of the last counsels. We had to decide: eradicate the humans, enslave them, or leave. We were the only two who had preferred the latter option, sadly. Everyone else was too bitter and angry to want anything beyond revenge for the fallen, even though the numbers on both sides were too large to ever be avenged.”

Lilly sobered, remembering lectures she’d heard. “The human race had dropped to less than three billion people. The loss of the demons was so great, that some tribes went extinct…. I know.”

“The same night, she sought me out. We planned for days… and we were at the battlefield before either side had the chance to spill blood. What we did that day could have not only killed us both, but destroyed the planet we warred over entirely. We tapped into fate itself that day. I’m not sure what happened myself, as I only supplied the power that she didn’t have inside her. But I remember the faces of the humans across the field as they watched. I was rather ironic in my youth. I saluted them as the spell engulfed us.”

“… What happened then?”

He shrugged, a very un-kingly gesture. “We were here. There was room aplenty for homes and territories. There was a version of the moon, sun, and stars… But it was so dark at first. Everything took awhile to kick in. We are in a sort of… pocket of reality. The bird demons say that the atmosphere is much like the one on Earth, but it’s… cut off. We’re inside a perfect sphere of crystal. Think of it as a television screen. It plays whatever weather or vision of the sky that the spot it’s connected to his. It’s highly complex.”

“But Solaris, of this is a different world, then how did I even get-“

The moment was broken as the door flew open. Both princes stood, panting slightly, as if they’d just run very far and very fast. Crow composed himself easily and gave Lilly a crooked smile. “I won.”

Keir rolled his eyes. “whatever….”

Choose between these two? She thought, suddenly panicking, although she smiled easily on the outside, But they’re like night and day! And how can I get married! I just want to go home…

 

)O(

 

His human blood gave Keir a strange insight that other demons did not have until later in life. Where he was sure that Crowanun saw happiness, Keir could just see a practiced smile, and eyes filled some sort of shock. Crow piled pleasantries onto her, and though she exchanged them graciously, she also seemed guarded. Prepared for them. A glance to Keir’s father showed that the old King was watching the two with mute interest. What had he done to the girl? A moment ago she would be so embarrassed and flustered that she couldn’t talk. Now she acted as though she already knew every word that would come out of Crow’s mouth. It was bizarre.

Crow led the girl away by the arm now, talking about architecture and paintings as he went- trying to impress her some more, no doubt, while Keir waited only a breath before starting to interrogate his father.

“What in the hell did-”

“Walk with me.” King Solaris said with one of his tired smiles. “I was going to tell you anyway, young one.”

 

)O(

 

Crow walked the human through the halls of his old home, chatting away about paintings, the arches in the ceiling, festivals that directly involve the royal family, things he thought might interest a human. Human. Human. Human. Father was going completely senile now, if he thought this little girl would be enough to make him stop fighting for his right to the throne.

Father knew of his hatred for humans and what they represented, and probably brought her into the picture to scare him away, or force his hand and draw him in to a direct confrontation with the castle. Crowanun knew the game of politics, and he would not so easily be driven off. He had charm. He would make the human fall for him before Keir even knew what hit him. And afterward…. If she was smart, she would either submit to him and stay out of sight, or she would go back where she belonged. If she was stupid, she would stay in love with him and turn old waiting for him to return his affections to her. Either way, he would not lose.

But what has she done to you, better yet, since when has your father been so straight-forwad? A small voice in his mind asked. That made him think for a moment. If father’s ultimate goal was not to scare him away, then what? Was father trying to give him a loophole? Perhaps, perhaps…

He studied the human again. He had not been lying, when he complimented her. Her skin was a creamy peach color, which gave a dazzling contrast to his more earthen tone. She did not have any disfiguring marks. Her skin was clear of those odd red bumps that humans sometimes got for no reason. She could be beautiful, but she was not demon beautiful.

Her second redeeming quality was her mind. She was no fool. He had a feeling that father had already told her of her situation. He was no soft-hearted idiot like Keir, but he could see that she was much more guarded now. Her skin did not turn that funny red color of human blood when she was embarrassed. She knew how to play the game as well, and she played it decently enough… for a human child.

“How old are you, My Lady?”

She blinked up at him, probably shocked by the abrupt change in topic. “Seventeen, Prince Crow. My eighteenth birthday is at the beginning of fall.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “Just Crow, if you please… you’re a guest here. Much more so than I… and humans reach their majority at eighteen, if I remember correctly. Which means you have time before you may be married. Time to think. I presume father has already described your… predicament?”

She tensed. Deliciously so. He could actually feel the pressure, when he assumed humans were so weak that they could not move him. Another good quality… this might turn out better than he’d thought.

“Yes he did… Crow.” She said. Her voice had risen slightly. What could that mean? Another reason he hated dealing with humans was their confusing attatchement to emotions. Demons did not usually let this things show. It was almost embarrassing… though she turned it into something cute, in a way.

“Then you’ve probably guessed what I want, My Lady.”

“The throne.”

He chuckled for her benefit, trying to use the right notes to make himself sound as he felt. “My home. My young friend, demons are a… different sort of society. Especially the Wolf tribe. I am the elder prince, therefore the honor of ruling should fall to me… but due to some unspoken rule, I am discounted because my parents were not royal when I was born. So, I am dishonored, and expected to leave my home and family behind to start a new life, and maybe a new tribe. Call me sentimental, but I would like to keep my home.”

She sighed, sounding almost defeated. “What do you expect I do? Promise myself over to you just because you have a sad story? I am sorry, my prince, but I’ll need more time with both of you before I can decide something like that. I’m no idiot. The wolf tribe marries for life. I don’t blindly jump into things. I won’t hand myself over to someone for the rest of my life so quickly.”

It wasn’t hard to laugh genuinely this time. “I have decided I like you, my little valley flower, so let me give you some… healthy advice.” 

In a blink, she was suddenly against a wall, and he was looming over her. His hand was dangerously close to being around her neck.

She stared at him silently, as if she was having trouble registering what happened. Sighing, the prince loosened his grip. “I do not mean to frighten you, but damnit… I have men with bloodlust under my flag. They would not hesitate to kill you no matter what I told them. If you were to choose Keir and my people attacked in retribution, you had better had luck on your side. I have a respect for your person and would regret it if you died, so if I were you, I would think carefully and choose the option that does not leave you lifeless with your blood to decorate my floors. Are we clear?”

The girl was definitely shocked as she nodded. Another sigh, and he led her to the small banquet hall in silence, wondering why he had bothered trying to warn her in the first place, when the pieces were barely on the board.


End file.
